Joseph Hart was born in London 300 years ago. He became a pastor and hymn-writer, his most notable hymns being ‘Come ye sinners, poor and wretched’, ‘A Man there is, a real Man’, and ‘How good is the God we adore’.
Having parents who were Calvinistic Independents, ‘I imbibed’, says Hart, ‘the sound doctrines of the gospel from my infancy; nor was I without touches of heart, checks of conscience, and meltings of affections, by the secret striving of God’s Spirit with me while very young; but the impressions were not deep, nor the influences lasting’.
He was educated in the classics, loved literature and could be seen, head bowed, foraging among the dusty volumes of the bookstalls at Moorfields. Warm-hearted, but highly-strung, he was assiduous in his studies and went on to teach the classics, which he cherished.
Distress
In 1734, aged about 21, he began to have serious concerns about his soul. ‘The Spirit of bondage distressed me sore’. He tried fasting, mortification of fleshly lusts and strict attendance on religious ordinances to gain favour with God, but this was just a superficial reformation.
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